20,000 civilians trapped in-between crosshairs in Mosul

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan 24) - The United Nations on Thursday warned that roughly 20,000 civilians face “grave danger” as they remain stranded in areas controlled by the Islamic State in Mosul.

Deputy Special Representative of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) Lise Grande told AFP, that at this stage, they estimate that there could be 15,000, possibly 20,000 civilians trapped in the last remaining pockets of the Old City, where IS militants are dug in.

She noted that "people stranded in those enclaves are in a deplorable condition,” with many basic services and needs not being met.

“We see disconcerting images of people deprived of food for long periods of time. They appear to be in a fragile state."

She also added that the civilians are “caught between shelling and gunfire.”

“IS militants target them if they try to flee,” Grande stated.

According to the representative of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Iraq, Bruno Gedo, a number of civilians in the Old City "are being used as human shields.”

Close to 900,000 people have fled Mosul, and many have died in attempts to escape the extremist group as Iraqi Forces close in on the remaining pockets of resistance.

Grande also told Reuters that Mosul's infrastructure would cost more than $1 billion to repair after the US-backed Iraqi offensive to retake the city from Islamic State ends.

“The extent of damage was far greater than expected and much worse in the western half of the city than in the east, which was retaken from IS six months ago,” she said.

The population of Mosul has endured immense suffering in the war to retake the northern Iraqi city from IS, and trauma cases among civilians are sharply rising in the last stages of battle according to Doctors Without Borders (MSF).

Iraqi commanders have predicted final victory in Mosul this week after nine months of fighting.